The invention relates to a new and distinct variety of an apple fruit and apple tree (Malus domesticus) called xe2x80x9cStella Minnesotaxe2x80x9d. Growers, marketers, and consumers are continually looking for new apple species to provide heretofore unavailable qualities. Among desirable qualities are eating qualities such as crispness, sweetness, flavor and skin texture. Utility in salads, cooking, sauces and other apple products benefits from early development and taste and color stability. A need has existed for some time for apples that resisted browning, once cut, apples that have excellent eating qualities, early ripening and other desirable properties.
The Malus domesticus apple variety of the invention is an early season apple, excellent for fresh eating, salads, sliced applies, dried apples, sauce, pie and desserts. The claimed plant is a chance seedling discovered growing from composted apple pomace in the garden at Cox Apple Orchard near Cleveland, Minn. Parentage of claimed plant is unknown, whereas seeds could have sprouted from any one of twenty-five named varieties, or three unnamed seedlings in the orchard. The variety has been grafted to known root stock.
Some characteristics of the claimed plant are somewhat similar to well known named cultivars such as Cortland, Paulared, Famuse (Snow Apple), State Fair, and Haralson, but similarities only match one or two characteristics with differences in at least three traits of each of the above-named cultivars.
There is resemblance to Cortland in two respects, as both have some fruit set on terminals. The white flesh of the fruit is somewhat similar, but the flavor and texture are different. Other obvious differences are the leaf shape and size, the growth habit of the tree, and the coloration of the fruit.
The resemblance to Paulared is the season of maturity of the fruit. The differences are in the growth habit of the tree. The leaf pattern of Paulared clusters more with more blind wood between clusters and fruiting spurs. The leaf shape of Paulared is more enlongated and typically smaller. The color of mature Paulared fruit is a different shade of red versus red-orange. The flavor and texture of the fruit is different in that the Paulared fruit is generally milder, softer, less crisp and breaking, with having less shelf life.
Similar to Famuse is the strikingly white flesh of the fruit and a hint of the same flavor. The differences are in coloration of the fruit exterior, the season of maturity, tree growth habit, and leaf structure.
There is a resemblance of the claimed plant to the Haralson cultivar in that the bare wood in dormant season has a reddish caste particularly on two to four year old wood. The texture of the fruit is similar in crispness, but the flavor of the Haralson is much more tart versus sweet, and Haralson""s season of maturity is later in the fall. Haralson fruit (some strains) has white dots upon a red coloration, but the claimed plant""s fruit has fewer but larger star-shaped white dots upon a red-orange color. The two differ also in tree growth habit and leaf shape.
The resemblance to State Fair is also limited to two traits; the season of maturity and the extraordinary amount of leaf surface due to large leaf size and abundance. The most obvious differences include leaf shape and coloration, the tree form and growth habit, and the color and flavor of the fruit. State Fair parentage of the claimed plant is unlikely because there were no State Fair trees in the orchard previous to growth of the seedling.
The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of apple, fruit and tree, called xe2x80x9cStella Minnesotaxe2x80x9d. This tree provides a fruit having improved taste and crispness, resistance to browning, characteristic white star marks in the fruit skin. The fruit ripens early in the season, has long storage life, excellent flavor, crisp, juicy texture, and a utility in common apple products. The tree shows large green leaves and combines the characteristics of having a compact form with vigorous growth, angled branches, and annual fruit production.